DAILY DIRT: It’s a good week to binge on some old favorites

Start your holiday journey with “Yellowstone” and “Breaking Bad” … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 821 of The Daily Dirt.

1. The holiday season brings a perfect time to catch up on — or enjoy again — some of the best “bingeworthy” TV series of all time.

Or, maybe enjoy a series you have never watched but always wanted to sample.

Here are my leading suggestions, which you can find on various platforms:

1. “Yellowstone”: There’s a reason it became cable TV’s most popular show. Take your pick from “terrific” and “addictive” as the most apt description of this epic detailing the actions of the fictitious Dutton family. And if you have never watched any of this series, but come come to find it as fascinating as most have, may I suggest you follow it up with the “1883” and “1923” spinoffs, too? It’s an excellent time to either catch up, enjoy again or discover this Taylor Sheridan masterpiece before it returns on a yet-to-be-announced date in 2024.

2. “Breaking Bad”: More than one critic has referred to this series as the best in TV history, and it would be difficult to argue the point. A high school chemistry teacher named Walter White (played by Bryan Cranston) decides to use his advanced chemistry skills to cook prime quality crystal meth … and what follows is the stuff of legend, not to mention legendary characters. “Breaking Bad” provided five magnificent seasons of not knowing what was coming next.

3. “Suits”: The series follows a group of lawyers working at a New York City firm, but one of the associates is hiding a huge secret. The series ended in 2019, but remains highly popular on Netflix and a “Suits II” is now in development. Hopefully, the reboot will again include Gabriel Macht as Harvey Specter and Rick Hoffman as Louis Litt.

4. “The Americans”: During the Cold War, a pair of KGB spies are assigned to a long-term, deep-cover mission, posing as an ordinary married couple in the American suburbs. The journey of these undercover spies is fascinating. The show got even better as it aged.

5. “Better Call Saul”: This was a spin-off of “Breaking Bad,” and while not quite as engaging as its predecessor, it was still highly entertaining. It’s well worth a week-long binge, thanks primarily to the performance of Bob Odenkirk, who played an attorney with plenty of skeletons in his closet.  

2. The following U.S. states that have the rudest people, according to the apieceoftravel.com website:

1. Rhode Island

2. Massachusetts

3. Virginia

4. New York

5. California

6. Washington

7. New Jersey

8. Utah

9. Illinois (One of the principal reasons Illinois earned such a high rating is because of its “rude drivers”.)

10. Ohio

Other states of interest:

20. Iowa

30. Missouri (The Show-Me State’s biggest downfall is a state-wide reputation for low tipping.)

3. This week’s Daily Dirt NFL rankings:

1. Baltimore (12-3): There’s no question now where the top team in the NFL resides.

2. Miami (11-4): Is Tua Tagovailoa back in the player of the year conversation?

3. Cleveland (10-5): The Browns are going to have an interesting dilemma next year, deciding between the people’s choice, Joe Flacco, and the very expensive Deshaun Watson.

4. Philadelphia (11-4): Before we start going ga-ga over the Eagles again, let’s remember it was the Giants they had to hang on against.

5. San Francisco (11-4): What exactly happened against Baltimore?

This week’s marquee games:

• (Saturday) Detroit (11-4) at Dallas (10-5): If I had listed a No. 6 team above it would be Detroit, and Dallas would be No. 7. Prediction: Detroit 31, Dallas 30: The Cowboys are fading fast.
• (Sunday) Cincinnati (8-7) at Kansas City (9-6): I expect the Chiefs to right their ship in a  big way. Prediction: Kansas City 42, Cincinnati 14. The Chiefs regain some, but not all, of their swagger.
• (Sunday) Miami (11-4) at Baltimore (12-3): The battle for No. 1 in the Daily Dirt rankings. Prediction: Baltimore 31, Miami 17. Sorry, Dolphins fans. This one will not be close.

Steve Thought O’ The Day — Raise your hand if you loved that Louis Litt character.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. He’s whacko for Flacco.